Nathan Chasing Horse Convicted of Assaulting Minor

A Nevada jury convicted actor Nathan Chasing Horse on Friday of sexually assaulting a minor, delivering guilty verdicts on multiple counts stemming from allegations that spanned nearly two decades. The Las Vegas trial, which concluded after three weeks, centered on Chasing Horse's actions toward Indigenous women and girls, including a 14-year-old victim in 2012. He was acquitted on other sexual assault charges among the 21 total counts he faced, to which he had pleaded not guilty.

Prosecutors argued that Chasing Horse, known for his role as a young Sioux warrior in the 1990 Oscar-winning film Dances with Wolves, exploited his public image as a Lakota medicine man to target vulnerable individuals. The convictions primarily involved his conduct with the underage accuser, whom authorities said he assaulted after claiming that spiritual forces required her to surrender her virginity to cure her mother's cancer diagnosis. According to opening statements from Clark County Deputy District Attorney Bianca Pucci, Chasing Horse warned the girl that disclosing the assault would result in her mother's death, silencing her for years.

During the trial, jurors heard testimony from three women...